The Kharkiv Human Rights Protection Group works to help people whose rights have been violated and investigates cases involving such abuse, as well as assessing the overall human rights situation in Ukraine. The Group also seeks to develop awareness of human rights issues through public events and its various publications

The Prosecutor General has revoked the decision not to institute criminal proceedings with respect to the National Deputy of the recently dissolved Verkhovna Rada Oleh Kalashnikov. The announcement of this is given on the website of the Prosecutor Generals Press Service. It states that the Prosecutor General has studied the criminal investigation launched over the alleged obstruction of journalists in the course of their work (Article 171 § 1 of the Criminal Code) by Oleh Kalashnikov and checked the refusal to institute criminal proceedings.

“On the results of this inspection, the decision not to institute criminal proceedings has been revoked, and the criminal file sent to the Kyiv City Prosecutor in order to organize further investigation”.

As reported here, the decision to review the refusal was announced on 12 July 2007 which marked the anniversary of the event in which Oleh Kalashnikov is alleged to have assaulted a journalist and cameraman from TV STB. The anniversary was also marked by many journalists who organized a picket to express their outrage at the Prosecutor Generals statement only a few days earlier that he had found no grounds to launch criminal proceedings.

It is to be welcomed that he finally “found” them. It is also most cheering that those who value freedom of speech in Ukraine have consistently refused to let this case be quietly shelved.

It is, however, much to be regretted that it has taken a full year to get not so very far.